HCM CITY, (PNA/VNS)– Representatives of Vietnam’s tourism sector will take part in the largest tourism forum in Southeast Asia next year in Malaysia’s Kuching City.
The ASEAN Tourism Forum, to be held from January 16 – 23, 2014, is a cooperative regional effort to promote the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)region as a destination where Asian hospitality and cultural diversity are at its best.
The annual event involves the 10 member-nations of ASEAN, including Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The forum, themed ASEAN – Advancing Tourism Together, aims to promote the ASEAN region as an attractive, multi-faceted single destination, and increase awareness of ASEAN as a highly competitive regional tourist destination in the Asia Pacific.
It will also seek ways to attract more tourists to ASEAN-member countries, promote intra-ASEAN travel, and strengthen cooperation among the various sectors of the ASEAN tourism industry.
During the forum, experts will discuss the sustainable development of tourism and look at how our tourism initiatives and plans can further support this decade’s mantra of “Tourism conserves, preserves and protects.”
The forum will be a timely platform to think and act on implementing innovative and sustainable energy initiatives that will ensure the preservation of the natural environment for future generations, according to organizers.
ATF 2014 marks the 33rd anniversary of this event since its inauguration in Malaysia in 1981.
It is expected that the event will receive 1,600 delegates including 150 ASEAN tourism ministers and officials, 800 ASEAN exhibitors, 400 international buyers, and 150 international and local media as well as 100 tourism trade visitors.
In a related development, the Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia together with the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the state government of Melaka will be organizing the World Tourism Conference (WTC) at the Equatorial Hotel in Melaka from October 21-23.
Themed “Global Tourism: Game Changers and Pace Setters”, the conference is expected to bring together world leaders in tourism, high-level policymakers, and specialists and experts from both the public and private sectors.
WTC 2013 will be attended by hoteliers, tourism officers, airline and airport representatives, tour operators, tourism product operators, and students.